How do I choose the right categories for my business?

You’ve built a brilliant business, but now you’re staring at a dropdown menu full of categories, feeling like you’re picking your destiny from a cosmic vending machine. Whether you’re listing on business directories, setting up Google My Business, or choosing Amazon categories for your products, getting this right can make or break your visibility. This guide will walk you through the art and science of category selection, helping you position your business where customers actually look for it.

Understanding Category Classification Systems

Think of business categories like the Dewey Decimal System, but for commerce. Every platform, directory, and search engine has its own way of organising businesses, and understanding these systems is your first step toward category mastery.

Primary vs Secondary Categories

Most platforms distinguish between primary and secondary categories, though they don’t always make this crystal clear. Your primary category is your business’s main identity – it’s what you’d put on your business card if you only had three words. Secondary categories are your supporting acts, the additional services or products that round out your offering.

Let me share my experience with a client who ran a bakery that also offered catering services. They initially chose “Catering” as their primary category because it generated more revenue. Big mistake. Customers searching for “bakery near me” never found them, during those looking for caterers were often disappointed by the limited catering menu. We switched “Bakery” to primary and “Catering Services” to secondary, and their foot traffic increased by 40% within three months.

The trick is thinking like your customers, not like your accountant. What are people actually searching for when they need your services? A wedding photographer might generate income from corporate headshots, but brides-to-be aren’t searching for “corporate photography” when planning their big day.

Industry Standard Taxonomies

Every industry has its own language, and category systems reflect this tribal knowledge. The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) provides a standardised framework that many platforms reference, but it’s just the starting point.

Take restaurants, for instance. You’ve got your basic “Restaurant” category, but then it branches into “Fast Food,” “Fine Dining,” “Casual Dining,” “Food Trucks,” and dozens of cuisine-specific categories. Each carries different customer expectations and search behaviours.

Here’s where it gets interesting: some platforms use hybrid systems that blend industry standards with their own user behaviour data. Amazon’s category system, for example, evolved from customer search patterns rather than traditional retail classifications. This is why choosing Amazon book categories requires understanding both literary genres and how readers actually browse.

Platform-Specific Category Structures

Every platform thinks it knows your business better than you do, and they’ve all got different ideas about how to slice and dice the commercial universe. Google My Business favours broad, search-friendly categories. Yelp leans into consumer language. Amazon obsesses over product-specific classifications.

The key insight? Don’t try to be everything to everyone on every platform. Instead, optimise for each platform’s unique logic while maintaining consistency in your core business identity.

Consider how a fitness instructor might categorise differently across platforms:

• Google My Business: “Personal Trainer” (primary), “Fitness Instructor” (secondary)
• Yelp: “Trainers,” “Gyms”
• Facebook: “Fitness Trainer,” “Health/Wellness Website”
• LinkedIn: “Health, Wellness and Fitness”

Each platform’s algorithm weighs categories differently in search results, so understanding these nuances can significantly impact your visibility.

Analyzing Your Business Model

Right, let’s get down to brass tacks. Before you can choose the perfect categories, you need to understand your business with surgical precision. This isn’t about what you think you do – it’s about what customers actually buy from you and why.

Core Service Identification

Your core service isn’t necessarily your most profitable one – it’s the one that defines your business’s essence and drives customer acquisition. Think of it as your business’s DNA, the thing that makes you uniquely valuable in the marketplace.

I once worked with a web design agency that was making most of their money from ongoing maintenance contracts, but their core service was still web design. Why? Because customers didn’t search for “website maintenance” when they needed a new site – they searched for “web design,” then discovered the maintenance services later.

To identify your core service, ask yourself:

• What do new customers typically buy first?
• What service would you be most comfortable advertising on a billboard?
• If you could only offer one service, which would keep your business viable?
• What do your best customers tell their friends you do?

Document everything your business does, then rank these activities by customer acquisition impact, not revenue. The service that brings in the most new customers is usually your category-defining core service.

Revenue Stream Mapping

Now we’re getting into the nitty-gritty. Revenue stream mapping helps you understand which categories might be worth pursuing as secondary options and which are just noise.

Start by listing every way your business makes money, then categorise these streams by:

• Percentage of total revenue
• Customer acquisition potential
• Search volume for related terms
• Competition level in each category

Here’s a real example from a photography business I analysed:

The insight? Even though stock photo sales generated revenue, they weren’t worth a category slot because they didn’t drive customer acquisition and had minimal search volume.

Target Market Segmentation

Your customers don’t all think alike, and they certainly don’t all search alike. Understanding your market segments helps you choose categories that actually connect with how different customer groups look for businesses like yours.

Take a business consultant who works with both startups and established corporations. Startup founders might search for “business coach” or “startup advisor,” while corporate executives look for “management consultant” or “strategy consultant.” Same person, same skills, completely different search behaviours.

To map your market segments effectively:

1. Identify distinct customer groups (age, income, needs, behaviour)
2. Research how each group searches for your services
3. Note the language differences between groups
4. Prioritise segments by business value and search volume

Don’t fall into the trap of trying to appeal to everyone. It’s better to dominate in two relevant categories than to be invisible in five.

Competitive Positioning Analysis

Here’s where things get properly well-thought-out. You’re not choosing categories in a vacuum – you’re entering competitive arenas where other businesses are already fighting for attention.

Smart competitive analysis goes beyond simply seeing what categories your competitors use. You need to understand:

• Which categories are oversaturated vs underserved
• Where your unique value proposition has the most impact
• Which competitor categories you can realistically challenge
• Where there might be category gaps you can exploit

I discovered this firsthand when helping a local marketing agency. They were trying to compete in “Digital Marketing Agency” – a category dominated by huge firms with massive budgets. But when we looked at “Local SEO Services,” we found a much less competitive category where their local ability gave them a genuine advantage.

Use tools like Google Keyword Planner, SEMrush, or even simple Google searches to understand competitive density in different categories. Look for categories where you can realistically rank in the top 10 results, not where you’ll be buried on page 47.

The goal isn’t to avoid competition entirely – it’s to compete where you have the best chance of winning during still reaching your target customers.

Intentional Category Selection Framework

Now that you understand the sector and your business model, it’s time to make some decisions. This isn’t about gut feelings or what sounds impressive – it’s about deliberate positioning that drives real business results.

The Three-Tier Hierarchy Method

Think of your category selection like building a pyramid. Your primary category is the foundation – broad enough to capture your main market but specific enough to be meaningful. Secondary categories are your middle tier, capturing important but smaller segments. Tertiary categories are the tip – highly specific niches that might drive smaller volumes but often convert better.

Here’s how a home renovation company might structure their categories:

Primary: “Home Renovation Contractor” – This captures the broadest search intent and clearly communicates the core business.

Secondary: “Kitchen Remodeling,” “Bathroom Renovation” – These target specific high-value projects that drive marked revenue.

Tertiary: “Accessibility Modifications,” “Historic Home Restoration” – Niche services that face less competition and often command premium pricing.

The sweet spot is being specific enough to match customer intent at the same time as broad enough to capture reasonable search volume.

Customer Journey Mapping

Your customers don’t just magically appear ready to buy. They go through a journey, and they might search for different categories at different stages. Understanding this journey helps you choose categories that intercept customers at the right moment.

Consider a business lawyer’s customer journey:

• Awareness Stage: “Business legal advice,” “Startup legal requirements”
• Consideration Stage: “Business formation lawyer,” “Contract attorney
• Decision Stage: “Corporate lawyer near me,” “Business attorney [city name]”

Each stage requires different category positioning. Early-stage searches are more educational and general, as late-stage searches are specific and location-focused.

My experience with a financial advisor illustrates this perfectly. Initially, they only categorised under “Financial Advisor,” missing customers in the awareness stage searching for “retirement planning help” or “investment guidance.” By adding these broader categories, they captured customers much earlier in the decision process.

Platform-Specific Optimisation

Here’s where most businesses mess up: they use the same category strategy across every platform. That’s like wearing the same outfit to a beach party and a board meeting – technically possible, but not optimal.

Different platforms serve different purposes in the customer journey:

Google My Business: Focuses on local, immediate-need searches. Choose categories that match “near me” search behaviour.

LinkedIn: Professional networking and B2B discovery. Categories should reflect industry skill and professional services.

Yelp: Consumer reviews and recommendations. Categories should match how customers describe your business to friends.

Industry Directories: Professional credibility and referrals. Categories should align with industry standards and professional classifications.

The key is maintaining consistency in your core message at the same time as adapting to each platform’s unique user behaviour and algorithm preferences.

Testing and Iteration Strategy

Category selection isn’t a “set it and forget it” decision. Markets evolve, customer behaviour changes, and new categories emerge. The most successful businesses treat category selection as an ongoing optimisation process.

Set up a systematic approach to testing:

1. Establish baseline metrics (views, clicks, conversions) for your current categories
2. Test one category change at a time to isolate impact
3. Give each test at least 30-60 days to generate meaningful data
4. Monitor both quantity and quality of leads generated
5. Document what works and what doesn’t for future reference

I learned this lesson the hard way with an e-commerce client who sold handmade jewellery. We changed three categories simultaneously and saw a 50% increase in traffic but a 30% decrease in sales. It took weeks of additional testing to figure out which category change was driving the wrong type of traffic.

Common Pitfalls and Solutions

Let’s talk about the mistakes that can torpedo your category strategy. I’ve seen brilliant businesses shoot themselves in the foot with poor category choices, and I want to save you from the same fate.

The “Everything to Everyone” Trap

This is the big one. You’ve got a business that does multiple things, and you want to capture every possible customer. So you choose broad, generic categories that supposedly cover everything. The result? You end up meaning nothing to no one.

I worked with a marketing agency that listed themselves under “Marketing,” “Advertising,” “Web Design,” “SEO,” “Social Media,” and “Branding.” Sounds comprehensive, right? Wrong. They were competing with massive agencies in every category and getting lost in the noise.

We narrowed their focus to “Local SEO Services” and “Small Business Marketing.” Yes, they gave up some potential categories, but they started dominating the ones they kept. Their lead quality improved dramatically because customers knew exactly what they were getting.

The solution is ruthless prioritisation. Choose 2-3 categories maximum for your primary positioning, and be prepared to say no to categories that dilute your message.

Ignoring Local Search Behaviour

National category strategies don’t always translate to local markets. What customers search for in London might be completely different from what they search for in Manchester, even for the same service.

Regional language differences matter more than you think. “Solicitor” vs “lawyer,” “estate agent” vs “realtor,” “accountant” vs “bookkeeper” – these aren’t just semantic differences, they’re different search behaviours that require different category strategies.

Research local search trends using Google Trends with geographic filters. Look at what terminology your local competitors use. Pay attention to how customers describe your services when they contact you – their language often differs from industry jargon.

Category Stuffing

More categories don’t automatically mean more visibility. Many platforms actually penalise businesses that choose too many categories or irrelevant ones. Google My Business, for instance, may reduce your visibility if you select categories that don’t align with your actual business activities.

Quality over quantity, always. It’s better to thoroughly dominate two relevant categories than to barely register in ten.

Neglecting Category Evolution

Categories aren’t static. New ones emerge, old ones become obsolete, and customer search behaviour evolves. The “Webmaster” category that was popular in the early 2000s has largely been replaced by “Web Developer,” “SEO Specialist,” and “Digital Marketing” categories.

Stay current by:

• Regularly reviewing platform category updates
• Monitoring emerging industry terminology
• Tracking changes in customer search behaviour
• Observing how successful competitors adapt their categories

Set a calendar reminder to review your category strategy quarterly. It’s not exciting work, but it prevents you from becoming invisible as markets evolve.

Future Directions

The world of business categories is evolving faster than ever, driven by changing consumer behaviour, technological advances, and the increasing sophistication of search algorithms. Understanding these trends helps you make category choices that remain relevant as markets shift.

Artificial intelligence is making category systems more dynamic and personalised. Platforms are moving beyond static categories toward contextual understanding of business offerings. This means your category strategy needs to be more nuanced, focusing on customer intent rather than just keyword matching.

Voice search is changing how people discover businesses. Instead of typing “Italian restaurant,” customers ask “Where can I get good pasta near me?” This shift toward conversational queries requires rethinking traditional category structures to match natural language patterns.

The rise of hyper-local search means geographic specificity is becoming more important than ever. “London marketing agency” isn’t just a location modifier – it’s becoming a distinct category that serves different customer needs than “marketing agency.”

Remember, choosing the right categories isn’t about gaming the system – it’s about making it easier for the right customers to find you when they need what you offer. Focus on clarity, relevance, and customer intent, and your category strategy will serve your business well regardless of how platforms evolve.

The perfect category choice is the one that connects your unique value with customer need in the clearest, most discoverable way possible. Everything else is just noise.